Meevin e



M. R. SMITH.

, Sewing Machine.

Patented "March 24, 1863.

U g @NH IMPROVEMENT IN SEWING-MACHINES.

Spcciu'cation forming part of Letters Patent No. 37,985, dated March 2l, 1863.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MERVIN 1t. SMITH, of Armonk, in the county of Westchester and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machines; and I do hereby declare that the'following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part ot' this specification, in which- Figures l and 2 are vertical sections, at right angles to each other, of a sewing-machine with my improvements. Fig. 3 is a vertical section ot' the bed-plate, parallel with Fig. 1, exhibiting the feedmotion. Fig. 4 is an under side view of the feed-lever, representing it partly in section. Fig. 5 is a top view of the shuttle, and Fig. 6 is a face view ofthe same. Fig. 7 is a face view of the needle-operating cam.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

The object of one feature of my invention is to enable a sewing-machine to sew equally well whichever be the direction ofthe revolution ofthe driving-shaft or its equivalent, and to enable the direction ofthe feed to be reversed by simply reversing the movement of the said shaft or equivalent without adjustment of any part of the machine; and to this end it consists in a novel construction of the needle-operating cam and feed mechanism and mode of combining Jthem with the shuttle-operating mechanism, whereby the desired result is obtained.

Another feature'of the invention relates to the isolation of that portion ot' the bed of a shuttle-machine which contains the raceway from the rest of the bed in such manner as to allow the work to pass around it, as around a cylinder; and it consists in a certain mode ofdriving the shuttle and feed mechanism which obviates the necessity of making the isolated portion of the bed very large or of crowding the said mechanism.

Another feature consists in an improvement in the shuttle by which its thread is caused to be drawn up with more uniform tightness and more uniform stitches are produced, and the dan gerof breaking the said thread is obviated, and the slack of the said thread is prevented from interfering with the needle-thread.

To enable others skilied in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to deuwith or otherwise secured to it the stationary arm G, carrying the guides for the needle-bar D and presser E, and containing the bearings for the main shat'tF ot' the machine, which is arranged horizontally, at a suitable distance above the table, to carry the needle-operating cam G, which operates directly upon a pin, a, which is secured firmly in the needle-bar.

The bed AB is constructed tlat, like that ot' ordinary shuttle sewing-machines, except tlatthe portion B,which contains the shuttle racewaybb and the feeding device,is made somewhatdeeper to giveitgreater strength, and that on each sideof the said portion thereisa slot, c, parallel with the raceway and extending from the front edge of the bed about three-fourths ot' the way across it, so far isolating the boxlike part B as to leave it connected with the main portion A at the back part only, and permittingcloth or other material to pass entirely around it, in the same manner as it would around a cylinder, and thereby enabling articles of tubular form-as boot-legs, c0at-sleeves, &c.-to be stitched upon it in a longitudinal direction. The slots c c are fitted with sliding covering-plates d d, which are inserted when ordinary dat work is to be performed, the said plates combining with the portions A and B of the bed to give the whole bed an unbroken surface.

The part B, which may be termed the cylinder,77 though not, strictly speaking, otcylindrical shape, is made with a deep groove, c,in the bottom, on one side of the raceway, for the reception of the feed-lever H, and with amortise, f, leading from the said groove right through the face ot the bed,for the passage ot' the feeding-dogg, which is rigidly attached to the said lever. rIhe said slot eis closed at the bottom by a sliding plate, 71 which also closes the bottom ot' the slot il on the opposite side ot' the raceway in which the shuttle-driver I works. The cylinder B is made open at the top, but fitted with sliding platesjj, which are movable for access to the shuttle, shuttledriver, and raceway; and the racewayand the groove are both open at the rear of the cylinder to admit the shuttle and feed-operating mechanism.

at the end of the shaft K, the said eccentric ing connected by a rod', M, with a curved arm,

Y the said Yslot n, and thereby allow a less or a light double semi-elliptic spring, s, secured The shuttle-driver is operated bymeans of an eccentric, J, onahorizontalshat't, K, which isarrangedin suitable bearings under and near the back of the bed, parallel with the main shaft F, and which is geared with the main Vshaft to. make revolution for revolution with it; and the feed-lever His operated by a crank-wristJt,

and crank-wrist being situatedin the opening ofthe rear end of thecylinder. The eccentric J transmits motion to the shuttle driver through a rock-shaft, L, arranged parallel with and below the shaft K,V the said eccentric be- N, which is fast on the said rock-shaft, and the said arm being yconnected with the shuttledriver I by means of a rod, l?, arranged within the cylinder, the said arm Nentering the opening in the rear of the cylinder. The feed-lever works on a stationaryl'ulcrum-pin, Z, inserted th rough the groove e, a slot, m, bein g provided in the said lever for the fulcrum-pin, and the said slot permitting the lever to move lengthwise as well as oscillate upon the fulcrum-pin, and thus permitting the crank-wrist k to produce af longitudinal as well as an upward and downward movementJ of the feed-dog g, which thus has a movement substantially like what is common tothe four-motion feed.7

To provide for varying the length of `feed the-bar H has an elongated hole. u, for the reception ot' the crank-wrist, and the said bar is fitted opposite to the said hole with a slide, p, which 'is adjustable by means of a screw, q, to cover and uncover a greater or less portion of greater portion of lost motion to the crankwrist in the said slot, and enabling the said pin to produce a greater or less longitudinalV movement of the feed-lever and a longer or shorter feed, as may be desired, the longest feed being produced when only a sufficient por tion of the slot for the reception of the crankwrist is uncovered, and there is consequently no lost motion of the wrist, and the shortest being produced when the greatest portion'of the slot is uncovered and'there is the greatest amount of lost motion, as the feed-lever, deriving its longitudinal movement in' both directions from the said wrists, cannot be moved by it until the wrist has moved from one end to the other of the open part of the slot. From tbebottom of the feed-lever there projects a pin, r, which enters between the two leaves of to a suitable Xed support, s. This spring is not required for producing the back movement of thefeed-lever, but is only used to prevent any rattling or loose movement when there is much lost motion ofthe crank-wrist; and it is obvious that as the feedleverl1as a positive movement in both directions, produced by the crank-wrist, it will, with a proper construction of the face ofthe feed-dog, feed aswell in one direction as in the other.

The arrangement of the mechanism for operating the shuttle and the feed-lever, by which all parts of such mechanism', except. therod P, are brought outside ofthe cylinder and into a position in rear of it, where they do not interfere with the passage of the work around the cylinder, obviates the necessity' of making the cylinder of so large a size that its combination with the tlat bed would he inconvenient.

The needle-operating cam G is constructed in such manner that it will produce precisely the same movement of the needle-bar, whichever be thedirection ofthe needle, its groove, which receives the pin c on the needle-bar, being of precisely the same form on both sides of the centralline, (shown in red color)that is to say, commencing with a short curve, lO, in an outward direction from the center, which produces a quick movement of the needle for a short distance as it commences to rise, thence being concentric, or nearly so, for a short distance to produce a temporary suspension of the'upward movement while the shuttle enters the loop ofthe needle-thread, aud'thence having a long curve, 11, to complete the upward movement of the needle. rlhe shuttle movement being produced by an eccentric, and hence being a regular movement back and forth, will, if the eccentric be set to complete the stroke of the shuttle simultaneously with the stroke ofthe needle, keep the shuttle movement always properly timed with relation to the needle movement, whichever way the needie-cam and eccentric rotate, and the longitudinal movement of the feeddojg in both directions being produced in a positive `manner by thevcrank-wrist, which has a fixed relation to the needle-cam and shuttle-eccentric, the feed operates equally well with either direction of the main shaft F, to which the needle-cam is attached, and when' it is desired to reverse the feed it is only necessary t'oreverse the movement of the main shaft, which may be done in any position of the parts withoutthe danger of breaking the threads, which occurs in reversing the direction of the main shaft'or driving-pulley of most sewing-machines.

The shu-ttle S has its bobbinuarranged substantially in the usual manner, andk has friction produced upon the bobbin by means of a screw7 t, in the inner end of which is the bearing for one ot' the'centers or journals of the bohbin. In the lower part there is a fixed guide-bar, o, under which the thread passes from thevhobbin, and in the upper part there is arranged lengthwise a tixed bar, lw, to which and to a slot, w, in the top of the shuttle, there is fitted a slide, y. 0n this bar w there is a spiral spring, Z, which is so applied in relation to the slide y as to press the said slide toward the point of the shuttle. There are in the said slide holes 13 13, through one of which the thread passes on its way out ot' theshuttle. As the shuttle com pletesthe movement through the loop the tension produced on its thread causes the slide y to overcome the pressure of the spring and move vback toward the heel of the shuttle until the spring is compressed sut'- kliciently to produce the requisite tension on the thread to pull it tight in the stitch. In this operation the distance between the hole in the slide y and the point Where the thread passes under the bar QJ diminishes, and hence aconsiderable length of thread is drawn out of the shuttle before the drawing from the bobbin commences, and as the shuttle returns and the thread is relieved of tension the slide y moves forward again toward the pointot the shuttle, and by iuereasing.the distance between the hole 13 and the point Where the thread passes under the bar c draws back some of the slack thread into the shuttle and prevents its kinking. Another advantage of the slide y and spring Z is that the shuttle-thread is drawn tight gradually, or with an elastic pull, and isthereby enabled to produce a more uniform stitch, and to be drawn tighter without danger'of its being broken.

YVhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-4 1. The combination of the needle-operating cani Gr, constructed as described, the shuttledriving eccentric J, and thei'eed-iever H, having an elongated slot, a, fitted with a slide,p

and deriving a positive motion in both directions from acrankwrist,k,the whole arranged and operating, substantially asset forth, to cause the machine to operate With the driving shaft or pulley rotating in either direction,

and the feed to he reversed by reversing the direction of the said shaft or pulley.

2. The combination, with each other and with the isolated portion of the flat bed coilstituting a cylinder or its equivalent, of the shuttle-driving eccentric J, rod M, rock-shaft L, tarm N, rod P, and feed-operating crank- Wrist 7;, the whole arranged and operating sul stantiall'y as and for the purpose herein speci lied.

3. The slide y, guide-bar w, and spring Z, combined with each other andtheshuttle,sul' stantially as and for the purpose herein specif tied. i A

M. R.'Sl\IITH.

Witnesses:

HENRY T. BROWN, A. F. SCHLEGEL. 

